Hierarchy is an open-source compiler for Java that changes how we develop our systems. It adds in a new set of keywords and operators for working directly with the most important part of our systems, data. Basically, you can think of it as Java with a new, JSON-like language added directly in, but with a twist...

Hierarchy adds persistent databases directly into the language! Now, any of these JSON-like objects that you create can instantly become a database. No more complex queries, or data scrubbing, or (not least of all) no more fighting with complex relational data-mapping technologies. In Hierarchy, your objects are your database! This makes Hierarchy both the easiest and (once Frictionless Persistence is done) one of the fastest database-solutions in the world!

And we know this sounds like the typical marketing B.S., but it makes sense once you understand how Hierarchy works:

For a quick tour of Hierarchy, click the play button.

One important aspect the video doesn't talk about is that in Hierarchy, you don't even have to worry about the performance of your database code. The speed of accessing our persistent Matrices is nearly the same as accessing a regular Java object (The main reason for this is because Hierarchy combines both the principles of an in-memory DB with a NoDB. We'll talk about this in more detail in the "Overview" section). Hierarchy lets you work with your database persistent just like regular objects, in all aspects of your programming.